The Atlantic Politics & Policy Daily: There He Is, Mr. America

Today in 5 Lines

Republicans are kicking off the last night of the national convention, and Trump is taking the podium as the party’s nominee. We’re covering it live here. Meanwhile, Ted Cruz isn’t backing down from his decision not to endorse Trump; and Trump’s campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, said the GOP nominee was misquoted in a recent New York Timesarticle discussing U.S. defense of NATO allies. The Times released a transcript of the interview showing it to be accurate. The U.S. Justice Department is suing to prevent the mergers of two major health insurance companies. Charles Kinsey, a black behavior therapist, said he was shot by police in Miami while he was lying down with his hands in the air. And Roger Ailes resigned as chairman of Fox News.

Today on The Atlantic

The GOP or the KGB?: Donald Trump’s comments about NATO in an interview with The New York Times underscore similarities between the Republican nominee and Russian President Vladimir Putin, painting a grim picture for international order and stability under a Trump administration. (Jeffrey Goldberg)

Looking Back, Marching Forward: The new series of graphic novels by Congressman John Lewis, March, explores the history of U.S. race relations and draws parallels with today’s discussions of race and progress. (Vann R. Newkirk II)

Hindsight is 2020: That’s one slogan the Republican party might consider adopting in the next presidential election. Here’s Conor Friedersdorf with a few others.

The Atlantic is at the conventions! You can sign up for our daily convention newsletter here, or find out about our events in Cleveland or Philadelphia. And follow stories throughout the day with our Politics & Policy portal.

Snapshot

Minnesota delegate Mary Susan walks around the hallway in her Trump cape at Quicken Loans Arena before the start of the second day session of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. Matt Rourke / AP

What We’re Reading

V.I.People Watching: The convention has been peppered with animated speeches and tense moments. But perhaps the most exciting attraction so far has been the Trump VIP box, where a series of fascinating interactions take place between the Trump siblings, their spouses, and members of the political press. (Ben Terris, The Washington Post)

Choose Cruz: Many Republicans were enraged by the Texas senator’s decision not to endorse Donald Trump on Wednesday. But, National Review’s Jonah Goldberg argues, the choice between supporting Cruz’s obvious political calculation and Trump’s narcissistic, faux-conservatism is an obvious one.

Thiel Is for Trump: The founder of PayPal—a gay, anti-war Christian with Libertarian leanings—has become one of the most unlikely supporters of the GOP nominee. (Max Chafkin and Lizette Chapman, Bloomberg)

Latinos Lament: Across Cleveland, Latino conservatives are hosting—and participating—in the usual slew of convention panels, but for many, the events are tainted by frustrations over the direction of the Republican party. (Adrian Carrasquillo, BuzzFeed)

Playing Favorites: How did Ivanka Trump, the eldest daughter of the self-proclaimed billionaire, become Trump’s most trusted adviser? (Michael Kruse, Politico)

Visualized

Jam Sesh With Michelle: Watch the First Lady get her freak on during carpool karaoke with late-night talk-show host James Corden and singer Missy Elliott.

Question of the Week

This week, we asked you to predict what song Donald Trump will come out to when he takes the stage at the Republican National Convention. Stay tuned tonight for his song of choice, and we’ll share some of our favorite responses tomorrow.